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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

I could eat pasta any day of the week, and I actually come pretty close. The only time I have gourmet pasta, though, is when my husband and I go to a local Italian restaurant. That’s why I was delighted to try a sample of Pasta Mama’s line of dry pastas and sauce mixes: Delicious, restaurant-quality pasta at home and without the fancy-restaurant price tag.

I chose the tomato basil linguine and creamy garlic sauce. The pasta, stored prettily in a clear, plastic bag with a gold-foil tie, is simple to cook: Boil water, throw in the pasta and cook until it’s al dente. The sauce is just as easy: Mix water and milk (or just milk) with the dry mix, and simmer in a saucepan until it thickens to your liking. The pasta was packed with a sweet tomato flavor, and I loved its thick texture. The sauce had just the right amount of garlic to be strong but not overpowering. And, both flavors went wonderfully with my simple, pan-fried and lightly seasoned pork chops.

Pasta Mama’s offers a variety of mix-and-match pastas and sauces for anyone to have an Italian adventure in the kitchen. The company’s website offers combination suggestions — such as pairing the apple spice fettuccine with the apple spice sauce — but to truly have fun, Pasta Mama’s recommends experimentation. Actually, I think the chocolate fettuccine embodies this philosophy. You can create dessert by serving this cocoa-infused pasta with Pasta Mama's chocolate sweet topping or cocoa mocha sweet topping.

Pasta Mama’s can throw a delightful wrench into any meal that needs new life breathed into it.